Tag Archives: beards and breweries

If you have followed Beards of Denver for a bit, or if you are familiar with either beard or craft beer culture, you now know well that there is often a direct correlation between a bomb-ass beard and an excellent craft beer. Based on that cardinal knowledge, you won’t be surprised that we met Tony Drewry (left, pictured here with Will Golden, Head Brewer at Austin Beerworks in Austin, TX) at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver in October. Tony, who is an independent craft beer consultant across the state of Texas, was visiting our fair city for GABF from his home in Fort Worth, Texas. His beard is just over three years old, but he’s had some iteration of facial hair for all his adult life, including goatees, mustaches, and mutton chops, but we must say, we favor his beard. Tony hails from a long line of Baptists and moonshiners, which we hear are both huge appreciators of the beard. Additionally, all of Tony’s sweethearts have appreciated his beard, and he assured us “Hell, even my mama digs it.”To care for those precious locks, Tony washes, conditions, brushes, and even applies a bit of Kiehl’s Superbly Restorative Argan Dry Oil for good measure. Even with all this primping, occasionally he does experience “bed beard” (think bed head, but on your face), but when his beard gets that wild he’s able to braid it to keep it in check. Regardless, Tony’s beard always smells fabulous (we have no doubt). When asked if strangers fondle his beard without his permission, Tony said he does occasionally get confused with other men who are part of the bearded brethren brotherhood, and he even has a name for these folks: “Beardists” (no comment as to whether the Beards of Denver ladies would qualify for this label, but we’ll take it as a compliment if so). Tony stressed that Beardism is “not a laughing matter” and has noticed over the years that a big, beautiful beard does seem to fascinate a huge spectrum of the populace and garners loads of, mostly humorous, comments. He did say if he ever hears another “Duck Dynasty” reference “It will be too soon.”Tony’s family, on the whole, loves his beard. His 10-year-old daughter dictates his facial hair growth and her most recent instruction was for him to grow his beard to his waist (we can’t wait for the progress report on that)! One of his nephews once wore a fake beard to Tony’s birthday party, and his very young nephews and nieces find solace and comfort in his beard. Tony’s favorite story about his beard is when his nephew Parker was three years old, he asked Tony how he grew his beard, and Tony told him, “Kid, I get up every morning, look at myself in the mirror and let out a seriously manly grunt.” About a week later, Tony received a text from his sister that read, “Well, I hope you’re happy. Parker was trying to grow his beard this morning and shit his pants,” Tony told us “I laugh every time I tell that story.” (That may be the best beard story we’ve heard thus far as well!)Besides growing an awesome beard and working in the craft beer world, Tony is also the Co-Founder/Art Director at lemonjuice.us. He works with the Texas Tavern League and is the co-pilot of The Beerliner (which we were lucky enough to experience in person). Tony also sings and plays banjo, guitar, jug, and kazoo in the band Shotgun Friday, which plays hill hop music and is the official unofficial band of Texas Craft Beer. We’ll be sure to try and catch them next time we’re in the Lone-Star state! Tony put it best when he told us that truly, “Beards make the world a better place.” We couldn’t agree more. You can follow Tony on Twitter at: @BeerPedaler

Sometimes, when the Ladies of Beards of Denver happen upon an amazing beard, it feels as if we’ve been saved. Which is why when we met Adam whilst sippin’ brews and sitting in a 1974 craft beer bus called the Beerliner in October during the Great American Beer Festival, we felt like we’d truly seen the light. After all, Adam, who hails from Ft. Worth, Texas, has been growing his beard for four years, and hasn’t even trimmed it once (though he has touched up his moustache) and we do believe Jesus himself might be envious of Adam’s holier-than-thou beard. Adam prefers to go au naturel when caring for his beard, washing it as infrequently as possible, and he doesn’t comb it all that much, which gives his beard its unwieldy delightful nature. When asked if people accost him to caress his beard, Adam said he can fend off most admirers since he’s a lot taller than most people, but he does make the ladies work for it if they make the request. Adam, who was one of the more humble beards we’ve encountered, said he didn’t grow his beard for attention but receives it anyway (which we think is rather well-deserved). When asked whether his sweetheart likes his beard, Adam told us he was recently un-engaged, and enjoying a new sense of freedom. The ladies of Texas better be ready, they are certainly in for a treat! When not growing out his magnificent beard, Adam brews beer at the Zio Carlo Magnolia Brew Pub in Fort Worth. We’ll be sure to stop by the next time we’re in the Lone Star state to sample the brews and check out Adam’s beard progress! We have a feeling his beard is still going to go a long way.

It’s no secret that a lot of our fantastic beard encounters here at Beards of Denver have occurred whilst sampling some of the many fine brews crafted in our wonderful city. It was on such an occasion on a recent chilly fall Saturday night that we found ourselves at Black Shirt Brewing, only to have our hearts warmed by meeting Ben and admiring his glorious beard. Ben even managed to surprise us (we’re normally so unflappable) by admitting to being a Beards of Denver fan! You’re earning mega points there, Ben. The incarnation of Ben’s beard was about a year ago when he started a new gig and proclaimed he was no longer going to shave, which obviously has been a huge gain for the entire universe. Ben, who’s lived in Denver about a year, is a true-bearded Coloradan, hailing from one of our favorite cities and northern neighbor, Fort Collins. Ben shared that beard growth is all in the family: his dad hosts an annual chili party where almost all the men in Ben’s family sport beards, and we certainly expect an invite to the next one! Ben’s wonderful wife of a year-and-a-half, Brittany, loves his beard, and we predict a long and happy life together for these two; after all, a bond built on beard-love cannot be broken! Ben says normally strangers seem to fear his beard, with the notable exception of Beards of Denver (of course). Thanks Ben, keep the beard growing strong!

You’re especially lucky today, Beards of Denver loyalists, because we’re bringing you a beard that will make you breathe easier–literally and figuratively. We met Mark while we were awaiting entry into the Great American Beer Festival in October, and we couldn’t have been more pleased to make his acquaintance. Mark started this version of his great beard journey in October of 2012 when he lost his job, but he’s had a beard the better part of the past 12 years (as you can expect, Mark is quite the wise man). Mark, who now works at the Pima Medical Institute teaching in the Respiratory Therapy department, has been growing his beard ever since he started his gig there last year, and his boss is one of his biggest supporters. His wife and daughter, however, are not exactly fans of his beard, which, of course, we find astonishing. Mark says that doesn’t deter his dedication to his beard growth, it just means a little less lovin’ from his sweetheart. If you look closely, you can see Mark braided the pretzels into his beard for GABF, which is his own handiwork; his wife wouldn’t help him as a form of protest. Even with her dislike of his manly mane, their marriage is going on 14 years strong! We hope his beard has at least a little to do with that great success. Mark, who lives in Highlands Ranch, says he gets lots of comments on his beard, especially from other bearded brothers “It’s like a beard fraternity,” he told us. One we’d proudly pledge, Mark! We hope all those pretzels came in handy at GABF.

The ladies of Beards of Denver always feel fortunate when we are lucky enough to meet a new (to us) bearded Denver gentleman, and we always have a hunch when we visit one of our fair city’s wonderful breweries that Lady Bearded Luck is a bit more likely to smile upon us. Such was the case on a recent fall night in Denver, where we happened upon Kyle and his fiery-gingerbeard as we were walking into Black Shirt Brewing in RiNo neighborhood. Kyle, who is originally from Mississippi, lives in North City Park with his lovely sweetheart Erin and their dog Belle. His glorious beard originates from the fact that he’s not very good at shaving, and he noted “Everybody loves it.” And how could you not love such a beard with that captivating red hue? Kyle’s redbeard is even more fitting when we found out he works at Fire on the Mountain in Highlands, our favorite wings spot in the city (and a mecca to find many impressive beards to admire). In addition to Kyle’s dedication to his beard, he has major allegiance to D-Town, proudly stating, “What other cities compare to Denver?? San Fran is cool, but it’s NOT Denver.” We couldn’t agree more Kyle. You and that fantastic beard of yours best never leave!

Sometimes in life, we take leaps. Some are big, some are small, some are of faith, some are into pools, but whatever the kind, they are almost always worth it. Today, Beards of Denver loyalists, we bring you Mr. Eric Pynn, who isn’t afraid to take a leap, including growing his fantastic gingerbeard to its full glory. Back in April, Eric took a leave of absence from his job as a financial consultant to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) with his sweetheart Manisha. Eric’s beard, which he has had for three years, had been kept in check via trimmings prior to this epic journey because when not a mountain man, Eric is a slave to The Man, making his living in the business world.Eric and Manisha’s 152-day PCT journey allowed Eric’s beard to reach its full potential, evidence both in the photo from the trail and the photo from last week when we caught up with him at Vine Street in Denver. Eric, who grew up in Indiana, has always played catch-up when it has come to growing his beard in comparison to his father and brothers (in fact, we suspect the real reason he hiked the PCT was to grow that beard out to its full glory). Because his beard takes more coaxing than his brothers’ and dad’s to come to fruition, his family finds it funny that he now constantly is With Beard. Eric blames the sweet Colorado livin’ he’s been privy to the past nine years on the birth of his beard, being first inspired by an impressive telemark skier he encountered with a frosty-beard who blew by him in Vail’s back bowls. Filled with beard (and ski) envy, Eric embarked on a journey to both learn to tele and grow a massive beard. We’re not sure where he’s at with the skiing, but we hope that beard holds up.Eric’s favorite part about his beard is the nicknames he collects because of it. Manisha, obviously Eric’s #1 beard fan, nicknamed him Gingerbeard long ago (as if we needed more reasons to love her) and her three nieces call him “Bob the Lumberjack” (neglecting to learn his real name; but who needs real names? It’s important to teach the world’s youth the value of the beard at a young age!) In addition, Eric’s been dubbed “Cougar Bait” and “Señor Guapo”. Manisha’s favorite story of Eric’s beard is how he received the nickname “Señor Guapo” whilst on the PCT (which became his trail name). On a rest day, Eric and Manisha were waiting for a trolley in Mammoth Lakes and a 50-ish woman from Mexico named Maria struck up a conversation with them, and asked Manisha if they were married. When she found the answer was no, Maria hit on Eric the entire trolley ride. Upon exiting, she called out “Adios, Señor Guapo!” Manisha firmly believes Eric’s long locks and flowing beard earned him Maria’s affections, and we have to agree. Señor Guapo, indeed! Thanks Eric and Midge!

Here in Denver, we are fortunate for so many reasons. We have tons of breweries from which to sample so much frothy deliciousness; we are able to get around on bikes almost anywhere in our wonderful city; and every night of the week there are a multitude of great live music choices to see. It is at one of our favorite venues, the Larimer Lounge, where we met Nate and his stop-you-in-your-tracks beard. We were there to see two wonderful bands–Shel out of Fort Collins and Whiskey Shivers out of Austin–and were pleasantly surprised to meet Nate between sets. Nate has been growing his amazing mane on and off since 2004, and has lived in Denver about 13 years. When he’s not playing the role of volunteer roadie for Shel he works at Renegade Publik House in Denver, which features many of the aforementioned delicious brews. Nate said his mom has a love/hate relationship with his beard (clearly we need to get her over to our side of pure appreciation) and–get ready for this ladies–he has no sweetheart!? With a beard like this and that much dapper style, that won’t be the case for long. Thanks Nate! We’ll be by Renegade to see you, and admire that beard of yours, soon!

We first brought you the story of our favorite Bearded Beer Trafficker, Dan from Wynkoop, back in December. He promised us a 6-month progress report, and boy, did he deliver! Feast your eyes on these chops (photo taken in April), which according to Dan, he is still rocking. As lovers of the beard, we could not be more proud! Thanks buddy!

When you combine a great long beard, a love of craft beers, and a resemblance to Santa Claus, who do you get? Rick, who was born, raised, and has lived in south Denver most of his life, that’s who! We were tipped off about Rick (who’s had some sort of facial hair since high school, when he got in trouble for having a mustache), and his amazing beard by his fantastic wife, Terri. We love the stellar shape of Rick’s beard, but not as much as Terri, who claims it makes a great “handle” to pull him in close for a kiss! Terri told us that young kids are always staring at Rick and his beard; her theory is that they may think he’s Santa, and he humors them by giving his beard a quick flip to make them smile—of course he’s a people pleaser; with that great beard, how could he not be? Rick’s dedicated to the beard cause; Terri said it’s easily been 12 years since she’s seen him clean shaven. Like many other amazing Beards of Denver, both Rick and Terri love visiting breweries—they’ve been to 149—yes, 149!—thus far, with Copper Kettle Brewing Company being their favorite (and also one of our favorites). Keep up that great beard growth, and beer sampling, Rick!

Fans of Beards of Denver, meet one of our favorite ginger beards thus far, Steve from Boulder! We were lucky enough to encounter Steve at the Beer and Bacon Breakfast at Denver Beer Company, where he was downing a few mugs of brew and showing off his amazing beard on a bright Saturday morning. Steve began growing his impressive beard on Halloween, when he went as Dexter (hence, the fear of the beard). He says his beard has acted as a superior face mask this winter while snowboarding, even though it often gets ice chunks stuck in it. Steve works at West End Tavern in Boulder while at the same time going to CU for psych and business; if his study habits are equivalent to his beard-growing skills, we don’t think he’ll have any trouble navigating the business world once he graduates. Steve’s originally from Chicago, but has called Colorado home the past four years. With a beard like that, we hope he stays for good!